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| - FACT CHECK: Is Texas Finishing The Southern Border Wall Through Operation Lone Star?
A viral Facebook post shared over 3,800 times claims Texas will “finish the wall themselves” using Operation Lone Star.
Verdict: False
Press releases about Operation Lone Star do not mention finishing the border wall. Completing the wall is not part of Operation Lone Star, according to a spokesperson for the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS).
Fact Check:
President Joe Biden on Jan. 20 signed an executive order halting the construction of the wall at the U.S.-Mexico border. The viral Facebook post claims Texas will now finish the southern border wall through Operation Lone Star.
In a press release, Republican Gov. Greb Abbott and the Texas DPS announced the March 6 launch of Operation Lone Star to “combat the smuggling of people and drugs into Texas.” The operation “integrates DPS with the Texas National Guard and deploys air, ground, marine, and tactical border security assets to high threat areas to deny Mexican Cartels and other smugglers the ability to move drugs and people into Texas,” according to the press release.
While the March 6 press release does mention “tactical border security assets,” it does not say at any point say that the operation will finish the southern border wall. A March 17 press release from Abbott’s office announcing Operation Lone Star’s expansion to “include efforts to crack down on human trafficking related to illegal border crossings” also does not mention anything to that effect.
Renae Eze, the press secretary for Abbott’s office, told Check Your Fact in a March 15 email that the “tactical border security assets” do not include completing the border wall. A spokesperson for the Texas DPS also said in an email to Check Your Fact that finishing the border wall was not a part of Operation Lone Star.
“Finishing the construction of the southern border wall is not a part of Operation Lone Star’s mission,” Ericka Miller, press secretary for the Texas DPS, said. (RELATED: Did Joe Biden Sign An Executive Order To Tear Down The US-Mexico Border Wall?)
Republican Texas State Rep. Bryan Slaton did file a bill that would direct the Texas DPS to finish the southern border wall, according to The Texan. However, that bill, which also proposes naming the state’s portion of the barrier after former President Donald Trump, is not related to Operation Lone Star.
Slaton’s bill was referred to the Texas legislature’s House Committee on State Affairs on March 18, according to the state legislature’s website.
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